Not Just another Long Term Chronic Illness — Social Work and HIV in Ireland

Abstract

This article begins with an overview of the involvement of Irish social workers in the HIV sector over the past 30 years, describing the culturally specific context within which they worked. Drawing on the authors’ experience of social work in the area, and on findings from a study conducted with social workers and people living with HIV, a shared perspective on the challenges facing those living with and working with HIV in Ireland is presented. Despite the fact that HIV is now considered a treatable long-term chronic illness, it is suggested that stigma and discrimination, and resulting fears around disclosure, remain key barriers to effective care and prevention. The contribution that social workers can make to support those living with HIV and to challenge such stigma is discussed.

Keywords:

• HIV
• AIDS
• social work
• medical social work
• Ireland

Acknowledgements

Our thanks to all research participants who gave freely of their time and expertise to inform social work practice in this area.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

¹ The Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act (2004) tightened citizenship laws, reducing the number of immigrants from Sub-Saharan Africa accessing HIV services from then onwards.

² ALF’S goal was ‘to foster excellence in service provision through open sharing and discussion … and to promote better networking, cooperation and skills development throughout the HIV/AIDS Field’ (ALF, 1993). The Forum also published a newsletter, AIDS Inform, from 1989 to 1994, and was replaced by the HIV Services Network in 1999.

³ NASC was launched at a ‘Sharing the Challenge’ conference in 1991, which had been jointly organised by civil society and the Department of Health.

⁴ Irish Frontliners’ magazine Frontline, produced in 1989/1990 provides a record of the devastation caused by AIDS, and the early activism of the self-advocacy movement.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Maeve Foreman

Maeve Foreman, Assistant Professor in Social Work, School of Social Work and Social Policy, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.

Neans Ní Rathaille

Neans Ní Rathaille, Senior Medical Social Worker, St. James’s Hospital, Dublin, Ireland. Research interests: Medical social work, HIV, refugees and asylum seekers Selection of Articles: “Medical Social Work in Ireland: An Exploration of Service Users' Perspectives,” Irish Social Worker (2015); “Optimism, Community Attachment and Serostatus Disclosure among HIV-Positive Men Who Have Sex With Men,” AIDS Care (2015); “A Whole-Hospital Approach? Some Staff Views of a Hospital Bereavement Care Service,” Death Studies (2013); “HIV and 'Direct Provision'. Learning from the Experiences of Asylum Seekers in Ireland,” Translocations: Migration and Social Change (2008); “Bereavement Support in an Acute Hospital: an Irish Model,” Death Studies (2008); “Increasing Social Work Students Awareness of Heterosexism - a Partnership between a Community Gay Health Project and a School of Social Work,” Social Work Education special issue on Sexuality (2008) and “Learning from the Experiences of Ethnic Minorities Accessing HIV Services in Ireland,” British Journal of Social Work (2007).